


Quality Time

by FrenchRoast



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-04-24
Updated: 2014-04-24
Packaged: 2018-01-20 16:16:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,331
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1517027
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FrenchRoast/pseuds/FrenchRoast
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rumple is somewhat annoyed by how much time Belle is spending with Mulan.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Quality Time

**Author's Note:**

> In a slight AU, Mulan arrived in Storybrooke the same day everyone returns from Neverland, and life goes on somewhat normally for about a week before certain events in "The New Neverland" occur.
> 
>  
> 
> **This work was a gift for the 2013 Once Upon a Time Holiday Exchange at http://ouat-exchange.livejournal.com **

_This is not what I was expecting_ , thought Rumple as he made tea in the kitchen. In the living room, Belle and Mulan had claimed his comfy couch and were catching up on everything that had happened since they had last seen each other, back in the days before Regina cast her curse. A part of Rumple was annoyed that he was finally back and finally free to be with Belle, only to have Mulan ever-present. If he were honest with himself, he had to acknowledge he was a little jealous of how much attention Mulan was getting from Belle. But Rumple didn’t want to begrudge Belle the one true friend she had with her now in Storybrooke, and Mulan was new to this world. Once Mulan had a better grasp on how things in the town worked, she wouldn’t need to rely on Belle so much. Until then, he’d be able to spend time with his boy.  
  
Conveniently, there was a loud knock on the back door to the kitchen. Rumple was so deep in thought that he almost dropped his teapot in surprise.  
  
“Papa?”  
  
“Come on in, Ba--er, Neal,” Rumple said as he poured his tea. He was still adjusting to the new name; 300+ years calling your son one name was a hard habit to break. The door swung open, and Neal walked in, bundled up. As he took off his coat and scarf, he looked from his father to the door, and back at his father.  
  
“You don’t think maybe you should lock it? I know you’ve changed and you helped save Henry, but there are a lot of people who still don’t like you. They might not be able to kill you, but maybe you shouldn’t tempt fate, either.”  
  
“Worry not, son. The door looks unlocked, but I’ve warded the entire house against anyone I don’t trust. Which means only you and Belle can come and go as you please.”  
  
“I was going to ask--I’m surprised you agreed to this so quickly. I’d have thought you’d want to spend every minute after you got back with Belle. You two have a lot of catching up to do, don’t you?”  
  
“I have a lot of catching up to do with you, too. Besides,” Rumple said, casting a glance back towards the living room, “Belle is helping her friend adjust to this new world, so I find myself with a good deal more free time than I anticipated.” Which meant he had no excuse to get out of this “Fun Run” Neal was organising for the town to give everyone something to look forward to. Not that Rumple didn’t want to spend time with his son, but running wasn’t exactly his style.  
  
Neal raised his eyebrows. “New friend?”  
  
“Mulan. I’m certain she’s very nice and all, and at least she knows how to defend herself, but it would be appreciated if she knew someone here besides Belle.”  
  
“Seriously? Mulan’s here? Hang on, Papa, I have to say hello,” Neal said as he sprinted to the living room.  
  
Rumple sighed and set down his teacup, resigned. Mulan apparently only knew the people Rumple most wanted to have to himself. He cleaned up and then made his way to the living room, wondering why Fate hadn’t let Mulan befriend people he didn’t want to spend time with, like the Blue Fairy or the dwarves.  
  
“I apologize profusely for my son’s interruption of your ‘girltime’, ladies,” he said as he walked in. Neal was already relaxing in the loveseat. A part of Rumple felt like he was the odd one out--Ba--Neal was nearly as old as he was, but didn’t look it, and Neal had spent most of that time in Neverland, as a boy.  
  
“No need to apologize,” Mulan said from her seat in the armchair. “I am the one intruding in your home.”  
  
“You’re our guest, Mulan,” Belle said with a slight eyeroll. “No one’s intruding. Rumple, come sit,” she said, gesturing to the spot next to her on the couch. “Neal was telling me how Mulan, Aurora, and Phillip saved his life.”  
  
“What?” Rumple sat down, hard. He knew Neal had survived his gunshot wound somehow, but in Neverland there hadn’t been time to hear how that had happened.  
  
“There’s not much to tell, really,” Neal said. “When I woke after a couple of days, they had patched me up. I was lucky they found me.”  
  
“You were lucky you had Phillip to break your fall, or you’d have been more gravely injured. I know battlefield medicine, and Aurora is wonderful at spotting useful herbs in the forest, but we’re far from being healers,” explained Mulan.  
  
“So you helped save my son, Mulan? Why didn’t you tell me?” Rumple asked, genuinely confused, but instantly grateful. He looked directly at Mulan. “I owe you a debt of gratitude I may never be able to repay.”  
  
“It was simply the right thing to do,” Mulan replied. “And you’ve more than repaid me by opening your home and helping me adjust to this realm.”  
  
“Papa, I have an idea. Not to demean you or Belle, but I know a lot more about this world than either of you. Belle, would you mind if I show Mulan around the town and introduce her to some more people? I’m sure Henry and Emma would love to meet her.”  
  
“I think that would be great,” Belle agreed, “if Mulan’s up for it. Take my coat.”  
  
“I would like to meet Henry and get some fresh air,” Mulan said with a smile. “Do you think we could watch that movie you mentioned when we were in the Enchanted Forest?”  
  
“Sure, why not. I’m sure Henry’ll be up for it,” Neal said, standing up from his spot on the love seat. “Let me grab my coat from the kitchen, and we can be on our way.” Mulan grabbed Belle’s coat from its spot by the front door and had just fastened the buttons when Neal came in from the kitchen.  
  
He followed her out the front door, but not before catching his father mouth “THANK YOU” in his direction. Neal couldn’t help but smirk back, then he shut the door behind him, leaving Rumple and Belle all on their own for the first time in days.  
  
Inside, Belle shook her head at Rumple, but her eyes were smiling. “This is all your doing, I presume?”  
  
Rumple held up his hands innocently. “I swear to you it was not. It was just a trick of luck and fortune. Not that I’m ungrateful for what Mulan did to save my boy, but I missed you. I missed us.”  
  
“I missed us, too,” Belle said. “How about instead of spending this moment fretting about how we haven’t had time to ourselves, why don’t we spend it doing something a little more fun?”  
  
“Such as…?”  
  
Belle leaned in and kissed him, slowly, gently. Her lips were soft; his, still chapped from the windy voyage back. He kissed her back and started to wrap his arms around her, but she squimed free. “Why don’t we go upstairs. I found a few interesting books while you were gone, and I want to try some ideas out,” Belle said.  
  
Rumple tried not to frown in disappointment. Books? Books? How could the woman think of books at a time like this?! “That sounds nice, Belle,” he said, obviously not too enthused, but he followed her up the stairs anyway. When they reached the bedroom, Rumple realized he’d been had. The lights had already been dimmed, and a book he’d never seen but had heard of was lying on the nightstand. The _Kama Sutra_.  
  
Belle smirked.  
  
“ _You_ orchestrated this, didn’t you?” he exclaimed.  
  
Belle put her finger over his lips. “Shhh, Rumple,” she said. “We’ve got two, maybe three hours before they get back. Do you want to spend it talking, or do you want to help me unzip this dress?”


End file.
